The Last of the Agents Pt II: Second Wind
by Staligarde
Summary: A second briefing. A second group. A second hope. A second chance. The sequel to "The Last of the Agents Pt I: The Legacy."
1. Friends of the Student

Disclaimer: I do not own Maplestory

Authors's Note: this is the "sequel" to The Last of the Agents Part I: The Legacy (thus, if you haven't read that yet, you may not understand some things in here.) I admit that this part may not be as interesting, since there will not be much action and fight scenes; the chapters will be shorter, too. However, the background that this sets is quite important, so it should be read anyway.

Ch. 1: Friends of the Student

Kyrin had just finished taking in another student as a Pirate, handed him a gun and a pair of Knucklers when they arrived.

There was one male and two females. The male had black hair, blacker than his equipment. One female had pink hair with curls that bobbed up and down as she walked. They bounced a few more times when she stopped walking. The other, older female had bright blue hair. They obviously weren't for any job advancement; their levels were already way too high. And none of them wore or carried anything a Pirate would.

Before she said anything, the male, obviously a Warrior, asked her "Do you know a Phil?"

She was surprised, and her reply was, of course, "Yes."

Now the Thief spoke. "He told us to go to this place. He said that we could get there through this thing called a warp portal here. Using these things." All three held up their Warp Cards simultaneously.

"And you were told to come here by Phil?" she asked.

All three nodded simultaneously. The Thief's pigtails bounced when she did so.

"Did he tell you anything else?"

"He died before he could tell us anything else," the Magician said.

_Died? How could he die? _though Kyrin.

They then showed her the badges with the letter A. This was when she knew this was official and not a prank.

"Very well," Kyrin said, remaining her cool. "The Warp Portal will take you over to the Omega Sector. The people there will tell you all about it. I will contact them."

She made a call and talked to the monitor, then nodded at them.

Brent, Celina, and Evelyne passed through the Portal one by one, each reappearing in the Command Center.

All three were surprised at seeing the actual Command Center. There were also surprised looks on Dr. Kim's and Professor Porter's face, but only from the fact that new people were coming, not that they arrived.

They were taken aback by the hi-tech monitors and buttons/ switches.

After they had recovered, they walked out of the Command Center and out onto the general area.

"So this is where Phil was all the time," said Brent.

"This place looks so…awesome!" squealed Evelyne. She began running all over the place, did cartwheels, rolled around in the grass, and flew all over the place with Flash Jump.

"Hey, come back!" Celina shouted as she Teleported after her.

Brent ignored the two and walked around. A door suddenly opened and a man came out. He wore the exact same clothes as Phil, complete with the "things" on the side of his head and sunglasses. He even carried the same weapon as him, only it was silver instead of black.

Agent Marco glanced at the two girls, and then turned his attention to Brent.

"Hello," he said. "My name is Marco. I take it that you have an acquaintance with Phil?"

"Yes," replied Brent as both of them heard a shout of "Hey, stop that!" Brent glanced at them. Marco acted as if the two girls weren't even there.

Marco nodded. He now looked over at them. He muttered something which Brent recognized as "Force Field," one of the skills that Phil had used.

All of a sudden, a translucent barrier appeared as both Celina and Evelyne slammed into it, abruptly stopping their movements. Evelyne, who had been in mid-air, fell to the ground and landed on Celina.

"Welcome," Marco said. "To the Omega Sector."

All three of them froze as they suddenly had a double take when they realized the huge building with all its devices and machines from the enormous building they just came out of.

"Phil was surprised the first time he came here, too." Marco said.

Celina and Evelyne slowly trudged over to where Brent and Marco were.

"Where are the aliens?" Evelyne asked.

"You know about the aliens?" Agent Marco said, surprised.

"Yeah. That's how we came to know about this place in the first place. He had called us to help in Leafre."

"No wonder," muttered Marco, still standing in the same spot. "I'm sure you have a lot of other questions to ask other than about the aliens." He added.

"Well, yes," replied Celina. She glanced at Evelyne. "But we don't know where to start."

Marco nodded. "Looks like I'll start it."

"You see, your friend Phil, was employed in an organization called the Agents. It's members are called, quite obviously, Agents. It is a secret organization; and a dying one, at that."

"A dying one?" asked Brent.

"Yes."

"How many Agents are there right now?"

"Before the death of Phil…He and I were the last of the Agents."

"So…right now, you're the last one?"

Agent Marco nodded solemnly.

"They were the protectors of the world, the peacekeepers," Agent Marco continued. "They were extremely powerful. They possessed unimaginable powers. Few people could even hope to wound an accomplished Agent, much less kill one. And for a full fledged Agent…" His voice trailed off.

"Then…how come nobody knows about them? Especially when the organization is dying?"

Agent Marco looked at them sadly. "Because it is a secret organization. Every member that joined was sworn to secrecy. It is arcane. Barely anyone outside of the organization—not even the leaders, (Athena, Sitting Bull, Dark Lord, or Grendel)—knew about it. Now they know, but are still not entirely sure of what the Agents are."

He paused for a moment, and, seeing a confused look in all of them, he said. "Not anyone could join this organization. Its members are handpicked. Even if everybody knew about it, few could hope to join it. It is an elite fighting force. They only ever revealed themselves one time…and that was when the Black Magician nearly took over the world. Even after that, they returned to their secrecy."

"But I'm getting off topic here," he said. "Phil, of course, couldn't tell you about it. He needed to keep this organization a secret. "

"What about all the times he ran off?" Evelyne asked.

"Those were his missions, his tasks. There were people who needed to be saved, and, well, he couldn't tell you about it."

"So that's why," murmured Brent.

"You say Agents are super-powerful." Celina said. "Why are they so powerful?"

"If you have seen Phil in action, as you probably have, an Agent has a set of skills that are rarely, if ever, accessed by a non-Agent. The one I recently used, Force Field, is one."

"And Nova Bomb?" asked Celina.

He nodded. "However, there is more. Other than this weapon, the Laser Rifle, which all qualified Agents carry, they also have another aspect."

"What is that?"

"They have knowledge of more than one class and/or path."

"I don't understand," Evelyne said.

"It means, most of the time, that they can handle multiple weapons with the same effectiveness. For example, one might be a Ranger, but at the same time, also a Crusader."

"So Phil wasn't only a Sniper/ Marksman, but knew another class's skills?"

"That is an understatement." Replied Marco. "He knew the skills of every job, and every path of each job."

"So that means…"

"He was everything." Agent Marco finished for Brent.

All three were stunned. There friend, capable of doing everything they currently knew. And perhaps even more.

"Why are we here, anyway?" Celina asked on an impulse.

"Because you three will become Agents." Came the firm reply

"But…just because we're his friend…doesn't mean we're as good as he is," said Celina.

"Yes you are," said Agent Marco. "There is a reason why Phil had you come here. He has gauged your abilities before, and I trust his judgment." He walked over to Celina.

"You, I have heard, are capable of not only holy magic, but other elemental attacks."

"You told him?" Celina asked Evelyne.

"Yeah," replied Evelyne. "During the trip to El Nath."

"But all I know is Fire Arrow!" said Celina.

"But that is only in the aspect of fire magic, no?"

"Well…"

Marco walked over to Evelyne.

"I have heard you are competent with not only shuriken-do, but also the art of the dagger."

"Well, I know Double Stab," Evelyne replied.

"That is enough, for now," replied Marco

Marco moved over to Brent.

"I see you carry both a sword and an axe."

"Well, I like to use both hands to attack at once." Brent looked at him. "I can use a shield, too. It's just that I have learned to use the weapons to block as well. But it's not like I know the skills of a White Knight."

"Ah. It seems that you are ambidextrous."

"What's that?"

"It means that you can use one hand or arm as effectively as the other. Some people are right handed and some are left. You are both."

"Cool," replied Brent.

"Let me see your skills in the other aspects of your class. Puppet!" Numerous puppets appeared around the grass, waiting to be struck down.

"Let me see your potential with your dagger," Marco said to Evelyne

Evelyne nodded and grabbed the Shinkita she had found in Orbis. "Shadow Partner." She leapt toward the nearest Puppet. "Savage Blow!"

The Puppet she had targeted was torn to shreds, the attack increased twofold with Shadow Partner.

"How do you know Savage Blow? Didn't you only know Double Stab? And why didn't you tell him?" Celina asked her when she came skipping back to them.

"Well, I decided that, since I had learned Shadow Partner, Double Stab, when the attack was doubled, only resulted in four hits. Savage Blow produced six hits, and it would be a lot more hits," she replied, blowing away several strands of pink hair. "And I guess I forgot to tell him."

"Evelyne, you are overly weird."

Evelyne just smiled.

"Not bad," Marco said. "Celina?"

Celina stepped forward, her staff raised. "I want to see every other elemental attack you are capable of," Agent Marco told her.

"Thunder Bolt!" She commanded. A number of lightning bolts descended toward the Puppets, frying them.

"Cold Beam!" A spear of ice pierced another Puppet dead center, straight through the bull's eye of the target.

"Do you know Poison Brace?" Agent Marco asked her.

"Yeah, but I don't think it would do much here."

"That is enough for now." Marco said to her. He turned to Brent. "And you?"

Brent didn't need to use any skills, but did anyway. He deftly cleaved through all the remaining Puppets, each hand destroying a different Puppet at the same time. He used Power Strike, Slash Blast, and Ground Smash once with each weapon.

"Not bad," said Agent Marco when Brent was finished. "Do you know how to use any of the other weapons?"

"Yeah, I guess. But I don't carry them around with me."

"Wait here. I'll be right back." He went back inside the building and returned with a spear, a pole-arm, and a blunt weapon. He handed them all to Brent as Marco summoned a few more Puppets. Brent then showed his mastery (or at least, competence) with each weapon, as he cleaved, speared, and flattened each puppet with a different weapon.

"Not bad. Not bad at all," Said Agent Marco after he finished. "You three seem to be ready for the training."

"What training?" Brent asked.

"Why, the training to become an Agent, of course." Said Agent Marco. He looked at them. "Because you will begin your training at a much higher level than Phil did, then your training will be slightly different. Do whatever you want to for now." He disappeared through the door and left them to their own devices.

"Uhm…what do you think we should do now?" Celina asked the two of them.

"Well, you two can just go do your girly things," Brent replied. "I'm going to practice using the other weapons a Warrior uses." He picked up the weapons Agent Marco had left with them.

"I'm not girly!" shouted Celina. Then a much lower voice said "However, Evelyne here is."

"What!" shouted Evelyne. The two girls suddenly began punching each other. Brent moved over and pushed them apart. "Do what you want, just don't fight each other." Both of them murmured something inaudible, and then went to do whatever they would do.

"Girls…" Brent muttered under his breath.

-X-

After a few hours of doing whatever the three of them had been doing, they were told to "head back to their own quarters and take a rest." In other words, to go to sleep. They didn't complain though; it the sun had already set and all of them were more or less tired, and most of the other people had gone to sleep already. They were surprised that they hadn't received any assignments on the first day they were here.

They were introduced to their rooms; each one had their own room that was the size of a Mushroom house in Henesys. They asked if Phil had one like this; Agent Marco responded with a quick "Yes."

The alarm came out at the middle of the night. All three of them had been too lazy to change clothes, and were up a few seconds after the alarm sounded. Celina and Evelyne scrambled outside, half asleep. Brent, who hadn't been asleep when the shrill siren blasted through the compound (he had been studying everything his room had to offer) got outside first, Blue Screamer in hand and glowing orbs already circling him, ready to fight whatever enemy that had come. Evelyne and Celina came out shortly after him, preparing for the emergency fight.

Instead of a monster or enemy, they saw Jr. Officer Medin standing there calmly, whom they had met when Agent Marco had left, holding a clipboard.

"Test passed," they heard Jr. Officer Medin say as he scribbled something on the clipboard.

There was a confused look on Brent's face. Evelyne rubbed her eyes and exchanged looks with Celina.

"Go back to bed." Yawned Celina. It took a few seconds for Brent to understand what had happened. They slowly lumbered back to their quarters.

-X-

Morning came all too early. Jr. Officer Medin was there to greet them.

"Good morning," he said. "I trust you all had a good night's sleep."

He received a few grumbles in reply.

Jr. Officer Medin studied Celina. "Hmmm… first Magician to become an Agent."

"You're kidding."

He gave her a stern look. "We don't kid here," he replied, his tone unchanging, and walked away. Celina and Evelyne exchanged looks.

Just then, Agent Marco walked over to them.

"Why does Jr. Officer Medin say I'm going to be the first Magician to become an Agent?" Celina asked him.

Agent Marco smiled. "That is because no Magicians have ever really become Agents."

"Why?"

"Because magic and science don't mix."

"Science?"

"Yes. The primary reason an Agent is so powerful that they harness the powers of science."

"Science?"

"Yes. You will learn about it in the coming days. Phil had to learn about it, too. And I cannot say it is a walk in the park," he sighed.

-X-

Before they were to learn science, however, they had to learn the skills of the other paths of their jobs. Since they were new, their first task was one that concerned the aliens around the Omega Sector, to get used to them. They were told to collect 5,000 Mateon Tentacles from the, well, Mateons.

The task was, too say the least, quite boring. The Mateons didn't put up much of a fight before they died. Brent, besides the killing, was put in charge of cutting the tentacles.

"My sword it going to need a major wash when we're done," he complained. His Blue Screamer had been completely covered by the purple slime that came from the Mateons, so it could be called a "Purple Screamer," so to speak.

Every time they collected a hundred, Evelyne would Flash Jump back to base and hand them over to Rice the Medic.

"Show off," muttered Celina each time she did it.

-X-

"My armor is getting dirty," whined Evelyne about an hour into the task

"At least it isn't cloth armor," retorted Celina.

After about three hours, the task was finally done. The long time it took to complete the task was mostly due to the lack of Mateons, and that the place where the Omega Sector called "Off-Limits" was pretty big, even though each Mateon had eight tentacles. They weren't "allowed" to go into Boswell Field.

Brent looked at his sword. It was covered in purpled liquid. The stars Evelyne retrieved were covered in purpled liquid, too. She glanced at Celina. Yup, her robe was also stained with the strange, thick purple liquid. But they were glad it was finally over.

"Good job," said Jr. Officer Medin. "You have completed your first training assignment."

The three stared wearily at him. "You are dismissed," he said.

-X-

In the common room, the three were chatting about their task. Evelyne was still complaining about how boring it was.

"You guys don't use projectiles. You don't have to go retrieving ammo after you've used them all up. You have it easy. I'll bet that just about every task later on will require me to do that," she said as she twirled a Tobi.

"What?" asked Brent. "You two should be lucky that you even get to use long range attacks. I have to walk up to each monster and swing my sword to kill it. Plus, you get Flash Jump, which basically eliminates any waiting."

"You have Ground Smash! Why don't you ever use that?"

"It only hits three monsters."

"Better than just one."

"It only goes in a straight line. Like Rush"

The conversation eventually turned into an argument, until they realized that Agent Marco was standing quietly at the door.

"Oh, hi," said Celina, and all three felt a little awkward.

He quietly walked over to them. Still standing, he began talking.

"You won't be complaining once you learn the skills of the other advancement paths." He said. Without another word, he produced three books, tossing them over to them. Evelyne picked up her book. It was titled Tricks of the Bandit, Chief Bandit, and Shadower. Celina looked at hers. The cover said Fire, Poison, Ice, and Lightning Magic. Brent stared at his. His said Page to Paladin, Spearman to Dark Knight."

"In order to become a true Agent, one must learn at least their counter-part's skills, from the second to fourth job. Or have the properties of another class. But I'm pretty sure you don't want to go through that."

Celina and Brent Stared at Evelyne. "Lucky!" they said in unison.

"Huh?"

"You only need to study one set of skills," said Brent. "The Bandit's Path. We need to study two."

"Now hold on. Just because one needs to study less skills, it doesn't necessarily mean it is easier. In fact, it could actually be harder," said Agent Marco

Evelyne frowned at this, but it didn't last very long.

"Who cares?" she said, opening her book. The others did the same. "Hey, I already know this. Double Stab, Haste, Endure, Shadow Resistance, Savage Blow."

"Read on," said Marco dryly.

"Dagger Mastery, Dagger Booster, Steal." She cringed at the last skill. "I don't wanna go stealing people's stuff," she whined.

"No. Not people's stuff. Monsters' stuff. That way, you can get their items without having to kill them."

"That's reassuring," replied Evelyne sarcastically.

"Whatever," said Agent Marco. "Remember: the General will want to see your progress, and I'm the person that informs him." Without another word, he left.

Evelyne turned a few more pages. "Pickpocket? Isn't that the same as Meso Up?"

"I don't think so," replied Celina, looking at the skill. "But it seems to be the same idea. It could be useful to combine the two skills, though."

"Heh, looks like I can skip through most of the second job skills for Page and Spearman. I just need to learn Threaten, Hyperbody, and Iron Will.

"Looks like most of the second job skills are similar to the others of the same class," Celina said.

"This looks so cool!" giggled Evelyne as she reached the fourth job skills. "Meso Mastery! Assassinate! Boomerang Step! And Smokescreen! I can make myself unseen without using Darksight!"

"Assassinating people is fun?" muttered Celina under her breath.

"Hmmm…HP Recovery," said Brent. "This looks nice. That way, I won't need to have a Bishop around me all the time." He glanced at Celina.

"Hmmm…Thunder Spear," said Celina. "This looks nice. That way, I won't need to have a Warrior around me all the time." She glanced at Brent.

"Touché," replied Brent, grinning.

-X-

In the following days, they "practiced" their new skills around the Omega Sector, Kulan Field, and Boswell Field. There were also a few other things that they were trained on; all of them from what Phil was trained on, though only on a minor scale.

The science came later. They were taught at a much faster pace, due to their already high levels. They had not been taught everything yet, but soon, they would learn it—it was inevitable.


	2. Unexpected Company

Ch. 2: Unexpected Company

"Tell me again what we came here for?"

"I was going to ask Kyrin about some… Pirate stuff. You said you wanted to come with me, Josh."

"Oh, yeah," replied the one named Josh. He was a Bowmaster. "And I suppose we're here to blow stuff up, too?"

"Stop kidding around. I still have to find the Control Room."

"What are you talking about?"

"Look. The Nautilus is like a huge maze. Even after all those years of roaming around the place, I still get lost."

"So you're saying you need my help finding that place. Right, Steven?"

The Buccaneer named Steven rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Now help me find the dang Control Room."

While they looked around, Josh asked Steven, "You're a Buccaneer. Why do you carry a pistol with you?" he asked, pointing at the Dellinger Special that Steven always carried around with him.

"So, if I find some stray bullets, I can shoot them with it. Besides, when I'm bored, I like attack low-level monsters with cheap attacks from a distance, and maybe I'll find some cheap equips that I can sell to noobs."

Steven looked at Josh. "Why do you carry a Battle Crossbow with you all the time? You're a Bowmaster."

"So if I find any arrows for crossbows," replied Josh, "I can shoot them with it. That sufficient for you?"

"Yeah."

After wandering around some more, they stumbled upon the Control Room door. But something was different. Muirhat, who usually stood next to the door, was nowhere to be found.

Steven walked over to the door. It was unlocked. "Hello? Kyrin? Anyone?" The duo wandered inside. No one was there. Looking around, Steven noticed that there was a card key lying on the monitor. He picked it up.

"Hey," said Steven. "This thing says 'warp card' on it."

Josh walked over to him, and looked up. "That thing says 'warp portal'. Do you think that the card is for that?"

The two wandered over to the portal. Without waiting for a reply, Josh snatched the card out of Steven's hand, and inserted it into the slot. It fit perfectly. Moments later there was a humming sound. The humming quickly grew louder.

"What are you doing?" screamed Steven. "We don't know what this…" He didn't get to finish his sentence. An instant later, the two disappeared through the portal. Someone heard the commotion from outside and entered, only to find the room completely empty, as it was before. He didn't notice the card key missing from the table when he left.

-X-

"Ooof."

Dr. Kim and Professor Porter stared at the two new arrivals. "Who are you?" asked Dr. Kim

The arrivals looked around, and without answering Dr. Kim's questions, he asked "What is this place?"

"It's the… Omega Sector," replied Dr. Kim rather slowly.

"Omega Sector? I've never heard of this place."

"You shouldn't have," replied Porter. He looked at the warp portal. "You were in the Nautilus, weren't you?"

"How did you know?"

"Just a hunch" replied Porter, even though it was a well known fact that, at least at the Omega Sector, only the Nautilus contained the other side to the Warp Portal.

Outside, the three Agents in training were still, well, training. Jr. Officer Medin led the two new arrivals to Agent Marco, who studied them for a few seconds.

"Hmmm…" said Marco. "Pirate and Bowman." He turned around to look at Evelyne, Celina, and Brent. "These two could take up the empty slots. That way, we would have one from each class. We'll have to check them out."

Jr. Officer Medin nodded, and led them to the side opposite where Brent, Celina, and Evelyne, were for briefing. As they walked, Josh turned his head and asked Steven "What empty slots?"

-X-

Agent Marco looked at them. "My name is Marco." That was all he told them for now. He looked at Josh. "What is your name?"

"Uh, my name is Josh."

"You're a Bowmaster, right?" Marco asked Josh, seeing Dragon Shiner Bow.

"Uh, yeah," replied Josh.

"Then why do you carry a Battle Crossbow with you?"

"So, uhm, I can shoot crossbow arrows I find."

"How well can you use it?" When Marco saw that he did not receive a reply, he asked, "Can you show me?" Agent Marco produced a number of arrows for crossbow seemingly from thin air. He handed them over to Josh.

"Uh, sure." Josh summoned a few Puppets and blew them up with Arrow Blow and Double Shot.

"Do you know anything else with it?"

"Uhm, I think I can use Power Knock-Back with it. And maybe Iron Arrow, though it's probably really weak. I don't use it much."

"Better than none at all," Josh heard Marco mutter. Marco turned to Steven. "And your name?"

"My name is Steven."

"You are a Buccaneer, no?"

Steven nodded.

"I see you have a have a Dellinger Special with you."

"Yeah."

"How well can you use that?" He didn't receive a reply either.

Agent Marco sighed and drew a number bullets from somewhere behind him. He handed them over to Steven.

Steven nodded and loaded them into his gun. He then aimed and fired at the newly summoned Puppets from Josh.

"Not bad," said Marco. "Though some practice will be needed. However, you two are certainly qualified for training."

_Training?_ Josh and Steven though in unison.

-X-

"Yes, sir," said Dr. Kim. "These are exactly the type of people we need."

Steven and Josh exchanged looks. They still hadn't been told what all this was for. "Excuse me, but can you tell us what you are doing? And what this is all about?" asked Steven.

Dr. Kim nodded. "Since you are qualified for training, and will eventually become one, I guess I can tell you, even though it's classified."

_Training? One of what? And why is the stuff classified?_ These were questions that were both in Josh's and Steven's head. Dr. Kim looked at them and could tell they were completely baffled, and didn't have a single clue to as what Dr. Kim was saying.

"Very well. I am going to tell you, so listen carefully." He looked around, and began.

"This place is called the Omega Sector, as I have already told you. I also told you that you came through a warp portal. Well, the thing is, Kyrin was looking for qualified Agents. Agents are a special class. They are the untold heroes of the Maple World. Only when everything began falling apart they arrived on the scene. And still they somehow managed to stay hidden. Barely anyone knows anything about them. They were there. Only a few thousand, perhaps, but they wield powers beyond imagination. A flick of a wrist could demolish and entire _continent_. The catch is that they require the person to be a sort of a hybrid. For example, someone with the dexterity of a Bowman and the strength of a Warrior could become an Agent. You two, well… Steven, you have the strength of a Buccaneer, but you also have exceptional dexterity and accuracy… almost the same of a Corsair. Josh, you have the dexterity and agility of a Bowmaster, but it has been discovered that you will also be able to handle crossbows with about the same ease. Now, we need an Agent for each of the classes. Right now, we have a Magician Agent, Warrior Agent, and Thief Agent. We are missing a Pirate Agent and a Bowman Agent."

Dr. Kim looked at the two. They were completely mystified; to them, it felt more like a dream. This was their chance to be a hero!

Dr. Kim continued. "Right now, there is only one official Agent, and he is training the other three. You will also be trained by him. This is no joke. We were in desperate need of a Pirate hybrid and a Bowman hybrid. You must understand this is not to be taken lightly. It is in, one way or another, intertwined with the fate of the world."

His last two sentences were spoken with a hint of urgency. The Bowman and Pirate looked at each other. It was clear they had made the same decision.

"We accept," the two said in unison.

-X-

"No one ever said it would be easy." These were the first words that Brent had spoken, without any emotion whatsoever, to Steven and Josh. They had taken the first test the Brent, Evelyne and Celina had taken: the false alarm. Then, the two had been assigned to collecting 3,000 Mateon tentacles total: a test of patience. The first two training assignments, they had done alone. However, they quickly joined into the training sessions that Agent Marco gave. They quickly got the concept of many of the skills, and were soon in the other three trainees' league. Day after day, they would hone their skills against puppets and doppelgangers that Agent Marco would summon. Steven had received a skill book titled Becoming an Expert Gunslinger, while Josh had gotten a book titled Crossbowman to Marksman Guide. In a four weeks, all five of them had acquired skills of their class's alternative path(s).

This was made possible with tons of hours spent on training that went far into the night, dozens of trips to the lower sections of the Clocktower, bags Ludibrium and Omega Sector Warp Capsules and Eos Tower Scrolls or just plain climbing the sheer 100 story tower, and equal amounts, discipline, strictness, fighting undead monsters, and complaining.

"_I hate Thanatos," muttered Celina as she and Evelyne wandered through the lower floor of the Clocktower._

"_How come?" Asked Evelyne._

"_He's scary, pretty much represents death, and was my freakin' impediment to my Resurrect skill."_

"_But you're a Bishop!" exclaimed Evelyne. "Holy magic is most effective on undead monsters!"_

"_It still scares the crap out of me. I also wanted to get Resurrect."_

"_But didn't Phil say that Resurrect is just an advanced form of heal? I mean, do you think that you really needed to counter Thanatos?"_

"_I don't know…"_

"_There's Thanatos!" screamed Evelyne._

_Celina jumped. But there was nothing there._

"_That's not nice!" Celina shouted at a giggling Evelyne._

"_Sorry. Couldn't resist."_

_Celina sighed._

"_So what will you say when there really IS a Thanantos?"_

"_Uhm...That there's a Thanatos?" replied Evelyne as a Thanatos came looming over them._

_Suddenly, there was a shout of "Heaven's Hammer!", a piercing explosion from behind the Thanatos, and the Thanatos was destroyed._

_Evelyne and Celina just stood there, as a satisfied Brent came walking over to them._

"_Why is it that that I always end up saving you two?" asked Brent, still walking._

"_Hey! I saved you and Phil the first time we met!" shouted Evelyne._

"_Yes, but that's neither here nor there," replied Brent coolly._

_Evelyne muttered something under her breath._

On that day Agent Marco all awarded them with an Agent equipment set: An Agent Receiver, a Titanium Receiver, an Ultimate Agent suit, Agent Gloves, a pair of Ultimate Agent Shoes, and a pair of sunglasses. He also gave each of them a badge.

"Now, this is where the real fun begins." Agent Marco smiled as he said these words. He handed each trainee a Laser Rifle. Brent, Celina, and Evelyne had seen it before when Phil used it. Brent, Josh, and Steven had no clue as to what it was. None of them knew how to properly use one.

"What I just gave you is the official weapon of an Agent; every Agent has one. They never go anywhere without it."

Steven immediately asked, "Can I still use my brawler skills and knucklers?"

Agent Marco nodded. "Yes. This is the primary weapon of an Agent, but they use their other jobs' skills together with it. However, its power is not to be underestimated. Many of an Agent's skills are only accessible through that weapon. But… there are also a few skills that are class specific, but only an Agent can learn them. That is after you learn the basic skills of an Agent."

-X-

In the days that followed, the five were taught the skills that Phil had learned: Freeze Ray, Heat Wave, Zap Cannon, Laser Charge, Laser Drill, Sonic Blast, and Laser Blast.

"You are having way too much fun with that Laser Rifle," Steven said to Josh. It was true. The two were in Off-Limits, and Josh was shooting at anything that moved, even plants blown by the wind.

"Hey I'm a Bowman. I already blast monsters to oblivion with Arrow Bomb. And now I have a weapon whose ammo fly at the speed of light. No waiting. What can you expect?"

Steven sighed. He never really got used to using a gun, much less a rifle. He just stood to one side and fired a single bullet at whatever annoyed him. Everything, that is, except one. Still, he was bored out of his mind.

"I'm going back. I'm starving."

"Okay," replied Josh without giving Steven so much as a glance, still firing bolts of light at aliens.

"Hey Steven, you're back," Brent greeted him. "By the way, where's Josh?"

"Still out there playing with his new toy." Steven sighed. "I'm starved. Where's the food?"

"Still on the table. Evelyne and Celina are still eating."

"Ok, thanks."

"No problem."

"By the way," Steven said as he went back to the building. "What are you doing?"

"I was actually going to go out and test some of the new skills I learned out in Off-Limits," he replied, pointing at the enormous spear he had in his hand.

"Good luck," said Steven as he swung his gun around. "Hope Josh won't bother you much."

"I hope so too."

Brent strolled out to Off-Limits, where Josh was still firing his Laser Rifle at anything that moved.

"Hi, Josh," said Brent.

"Oh, hey," replied Josh without even glancing at him.

Suddenly, there was a noise that came from the Laser Rifle as the words INSUFFICIENT POWER: GUN OFFLINE appeared on Josh's sunglasses and the weapon shut off.

"Hey!" shouted Josh. He pressed the trigger a few more times, but nothing came out of it.

"You didn't channel any energy through the weapon, did you?" asked Brent with a grin.

"Well, I uh…"

"Got carried away," Brent finished for him.

Josh smiled sheepishly.

"Use your other skills," Brent said to Josh. "Dragon Buster!"

Josh stared at Brent, sighed, and then pulled out a pistol. He fired a couple bullets with it, but it wasn't the same. He turned and left. Brent didn't even notice him leaving as he ripped apart more aliens.

-X-

"More powerful than Cygnus Knights, too, huh?"

The five trainees were reading a newspaper, which the Omega Sector somehow was able to get, despite that it was so isolated. The front page contained the following:

**There was no time like the present. When what seemed like a Black Magician's Subordinate infiltrated Henesys, he managed to knock out everyone in sight. However, who he didn't knock out was the person that _wasn't _in sight. A Wind Archer, whose level was in the 100's, managed to slip away unnoticed with Windwalk. He then surprised the Subordinate with Windshot, and finished him off with Hurricane. It is unknown what the subordinate would have done if he wasn't stopped, and we do not want to find out. As for the Wind Archer, he has chosen to remain anonymous, so his name is not listed here, nor is his picture here. However, it should be pretty easy to guess, since at the moment there are not many other Wind Archers at his same level of expertise and skill.**

"Oh," said Agent Marco. "The attacks you learn will be much more powerful than that. In fact, right now, the skills you have with your Laser Rifle are a lot more devastating than the ones listed here."

"How so?"

"You've been reading your books, haven't you?"

"Of course we have," muttered Evelyne. "What else do you expect us to do?"

"Actually, I'm amazed at how you haven't beaten each other up yet," replied Marco.

The five of them glanced at each other and quickly exchanged looks.

"How much do you feel you have learned?"

"Enough to beat each other up," replied Celina sarcastically.

"Do you think you have learned enough to beat Zakum up? Or perhaps, Horntail, or Papulatus up in the Clock tower?"

They all fell silent and stared at him, unprepared for such a matter-of-fact and realistic response.

"What can be more devastating than a fully mastered Windshot used in conjunction with Windwalk?" Josh finally asked.

"Chaos Storm" replied Agent Marco, no emotion in his voice whatsoever.

"Chaos what?"

"Chaos Storm. Here, let me show you…" as Marco motioned at Josh to lend him his weapon.

Reluctantly, Josh handed his Dragon Shinebow to Marco.

"Let's step outside, shall we? It could get a bit messy if I do it in here."

Everyone followed Marco outside. The Sun was shining, and there was a soft breeze brushing against the grass. Everything was perfectly peaceful, so serene, and so tranquil.

"Now watch this," said Agent Marco, grinning. He lifted the Shinebow, muttered "Soul Arrow", aimed in a direction away from the building, and screamed "Chaos Storm!"

Now what happened next could not be fully explained. All that could be seen was Marco's hand moving extremely fast, almost to the point it they seemed to stay in one place. Dozens of arrows poured out of the weapon. And suddenly, it was over, as quickly as it began.

"This skill fires 100 arrows per second. That, I believe, is much more powerful than Windshot used in conjunction with Windwalk," Agent Marco replied to the shocked trainees, especially Josh. In 5 seconds, he had fired a total of 500 arrows. The grass was now pushed every which way, and the wind even seemed to have changed direction. The sky seemed to have darkened a bit, too.

"This is the skill faster than Hurricane. I just used one of the skills of a full fledged Agent. In time, you will become one. Then, you will be able to move onto more powerful skills like the one I showed you." He signaled for them to head back to the common room. The others still could not quite believe what had happened.

Marco gave the weapon back to Josh, whom returned to its quiver, while still staring at the place in and what the attack had left it as.

-X-

"This is kinda getting boring," muttered Brent, who was playing his tenth round of chess with Steven. It always took forever for either him or Steven to win, and most of the time, the two agreed to start the game over because the current game had gotten to a point where it wasn't "fun" anymore.

"Then let's do a little training. It may replace the boredom."

"More training?"

"Yes," replied Agent Marco. And it will start with you," he said, referring to Brent.

"Me?"

"Yes," he said. Marco produced two long wooden rods and tossed one over to Brent, who easily caught it. He then produced two blindfolds. He also gave one to Brent.

"Put the blindfold on."

"What? Is this some kind of trick?"

"No," was the reply, as Marco began putting on his blindfold.

Brent sighed, but did what he was told to.

"Now take the wooden stick I gave you. You are to counter my attacks and, if possible, attack me."

"How am I supposed to do that?" asked a blinded Brent.

"Use your other senses; you have four other senses—you might as well put them to good use."

"How do I use those?"

"Don't worry. This is just a diagnostic test. I'll go easy on you."

"Uhm, okay."

"Ready? Here goes."

Agent Marco swung the pole towards Brent, who was hit by it, being completely unused to this.

"Ouch," was Brent's reaction.

"Don't worry. You'll get better at it. Now try to block this one. Listen for the attack. Use your experience to predict how I will attack."

Marco swung his pole a second time. This time, Brent blocked it, though just barely.

"Good. You're learning."

"Did Phil go through this kind of training?"

"Yes," replied Marco. "Do you want to be on the offensive now?"

"Okay," said Brent, eager to land a hit or two on Marco.

Brent swung his weapon. However, to his surprise, it was successfully blocked by Marco. Brent quickly reversed his weapon in an attempt to catch Marco off guard, but Marco blocked this attack as well. Brent blindly stepped forward for another attack, only to strike thin air.

"You make too much noise when you move," said Marco

_Does he even have his blindfold on?_ Brent wondered. His left hand flew to his blindfold to take it off. Lowering it, he say that Agent Marco had his on. _Maybe I can hit him now without my blindfold…_

"Put your blindfold back on," said Marco. This surprised not only Brent, but Evelyne and Celina as well.

_How does he know I took it off?_ thought Brent.

"I can hear your hand," replied Agent Marco, as if Brent had asked the question out loud.

Brent froze, not knowing what to do.

Marco sighed, and then said "Alright. So do you want to fight me without your blindfold?"

"Uhm, okay,"

"Then you may take it off."

Brent did so; he could see that Marco still had his on. Brent stepped forward and launched a series of attacks, only to either miss or have it blocked by Marco's pole.

"How did you block all my attacks? Is that see-through or something?"

"No. I just put my other senses to use. I can hear you. I have experience in knowing how a Warrior will attack, and what tactics they use."

Brent muttered something under his breath.

"Do you want to continue? Or do you want to rest and have someone else try?"

"I think I'll let someone else try."

"Alright," said Agent Marco, who had still had his blindfold on.

Evelyne came in, and put on a blindfold, too. Agent Marco, who still hadn't taken off his blindfold, produced two rods that were much, much shorter; its length similar to that of a dagger.

A second duel commenced. As before, Evelyne could not break through Marco's guard, and Marco fought, attacked, and countered as if he hadn't had the blindfold on at all, even after Evelyne took hers off. The same happened with Steven, though no weapons other than their "natural" ones, as Marco called the hands, arms, legs, etc, were used.

"How can you fight so well?" Brent finally asked.

"Remember," replied Marco, who STILL had not taken off his blindfold. "I have trained for this for years. I have had years of experience of this. There are many things that I can predict from you. You must learn to be unpredictable."

-X-

"I miss Phil," muttered Evelyne. She was drawing pictures. That is, if you could call Lewis Structures pictures. They were in the common room, with a huge round table in the middle.

"Yeah," replied Brent, who was calculating the pressure of a gas using the ideal gas law. "Everything seems so dull without him."

"Uhm, I've wanted to ask this," said Josh, "but who exactly is Phil?"

"Yeah," said Steven. "Who is he?"

"Oh, right," said Agent Marco. "We never told you about him."

"He was my first student here as an Agent. They he was also Brent, Celina, and Evelyne's friend," he said, pointing at the three.

"The training started about three years ago. He went through the most intensive training anyone could imagine…and even some that people couldn't imagine. You will have to go through much of the training that he had."

"He had all the powers and skills of all five of the classes." Agent Marco continued. "The Omega Sector is still unsure how he managed to do this, how he acquired the basics of all the classes in the first place, though we do have a few theories."

"At first, Brent, Celina, and Evelyne here had not known that he was an Agent, though I am very certain that he acted weird at times." He turned to the three. "Am I correct?"

All three nodded simultaneously.

"Not too long ago, he died in an incident."

"Died?" said Steven and Josh in unison, almost shouting.

"Yes," nodded Agent Marco. "You three were there," Marco said, turning back to them. "Perhaps one of you would care to explain?"

"Okay," said Evelyne. "He sent this like, letter to us, talking about some sort of reunion at Leafre. And we went, of course. But when we first arrived, we saw all these weird monsters, which were aliens, like the ones you see here at the Omega Sector."

"Anyway, we had arrived slightly earlier than Phil. When Phil did arrive, he was completely dressed in black; he was wearing the uniform of an Agent. Then, after fighting a zillion aliens, there was this one ridiculously huge robot, like the MT-09, but, like I said, it was a lot bigger. That one thing ended up killing Philly."

"Philly?" asked Steven and Josh.

"Phil," Brent quickly put in.

"So there you have it," finished Marco.

"Wow," said Steven. "I never thought this could be so complicated."

"Well, it's about to get a lot more complicated," replied Agent Marco.

"How?"

"Just knowing how to balance chemical equations, draw Lewis Structures, and PV=nRT isn't sufficient."

Everybody looked up at Marco.

"What will we need to know?"

"Have you ever heard of spies?" Agent Marco asked the five trainees.

"Uh, maybe," said Brent.

"Well…I will teach you to be spies. I will teach you the art of espionage, the art of deception. I will teach you the tactics, the trade, the secrecy, of the spies."

"What?" exclaimed Evelyne. "Aren't spies like, stalkers? Ewwww."

"Spies are not stalkers," said Marco. "They may observe people and the situations, but it is for a purpose. Spying is important. You yourselves may have become temporary spies without even knowing it. During war, the work of spies is even more important."

"You do not believe that the Agents could have stayed unknown, secret, and successful for so many centuries without knowing the art of spies?"

"I may have said this before, but there was only one time in the entire history of the Maple World that they revealed themselves to the rest of the world. And that was during the biggest war."

"Then how come nobody knows about them?"

"Because, after the entire war was over, they went back to secrecy again. All documents were either destroyed or confiscated. They rewrote their own stories. Most of it is true, but anywhere where an Agent, or anything remotely related to an Agent's work, was destroyed or confiscated and/ or rewritten."

"So we're going to have to be like them?" asked Celina.

"Overall, yes." replied Marco.

"But they would've become, like, famous!" said Evelyne. "Why didn't they take the glory and everything?"

"Because then, everyone would know about them. They couldn't let anyone outside their organization know about them."

"So… we have to maintain the same secrecy?" asked Josh.

Agent Marco nodded. "Many of the bravest men and women who had helped defeat the Black Magician during The War will never be known or revealed…and many of them were Agents. Each person, when they became an Agent, knew this. Each was sworn to secrecy."

"So we can't tell others what we do, or how powerful we are?" asked Evelyne, slightly annoyed.

Agent Marco nodded. "I have told Phil this before, and I may as well tell it to you: Agents were known for their obedience, strictness, and secrecy."

All five looked at each other. They realized that they were getting a lot more than they had bargained for.

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Yeah, this chapter is kinda boring. I'm sort of getting writer's block. I'm not really sure what else to writesay. I don't want to sound greedy or like a beggar, but please review. Reviews do help and inspire me to write.

Author's Note (mostly) to Fifteen Tails: This chapter may be kinda dull, but you'll like the next chapter (at least, I think so). Not because of fighting, though... it's about something else.


	3. The Revenant Agent

A/N: My Christmas present to Fifteen Tails and everyone who has been depressed by the last chapter of Part I: The Legacy of my story. Merry Christmas, everyone!

Disclaimer: I do not own Maplestory

Ch. 3: The Revenant Agent

"He's waking up, Neinheart."

"How are you feeling?"

"What is your name?"

"My head," he mumbled.

"Excuse me?"

"My head," he mumbled again. "That pain."

Phil had no idea what was happening, or even where he was. He barely had the strength to open his eyes, much less move.

"Wh-where am I?" He asked.

"You're in Ereve."

"Wha-where's Ereve?"

He forced himself to open his eyes. Slowly, a face swam into view. It was one that he did not recognize.

"What is your name?"

"M..my name?"

"Yes, your name?"

He stared blankly, then replied "I…I don't remember."

"You don't know your name?"

"No," he replied. Then, on an impulse, he asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm Empress Cygnus," the person replied.

"Empress…Cygnus?" He asked weakly. She nodded.

With great difficulty, he finally managed to get up.

"I don't think you've met everyone yet," she smiled. "Follow me."

Empress Cygnus introduced him to the five Chief Cygnus Knights.

"Hello there," said Mihile.

"Same here," replied Hawkeye.

Meanwhile, Oz and Irena were giggling like a bunch of 3rd Graders.

The Agent then looked at the top of the tree, and saw Eckhart sitting there. Half of his face was covered by a mask.

"What's up with him?" The Phil asked Empress Cygnus.

"He's not much of a social person," she replied.

"It's too noisy here," muttered the Night Walker.

"Yup," she said. "That's him."

She turned to look at Phil. "So, maybe we can find a way to get you to remember your name," Cygnus said. "Do you remember what happened before you were brought here?"

"I was brought here?" Asked the Agent.

She nodded. "You were, as it seemed, in a coma for around a month."

"I was?"

"Yes. That is probably the reason for your memory loss. That Wind Archer other there," Empress Cygnus said, pointing to a male Wind Archer who carried a Dragon Shinebow.

The Wind Archer walked over to them. "Were you asking for me?" he asked.

"Yes. This man here doesn't remember what happened when you found him," replied Cygnus, pointing at Phil.

"Hmmm…then how about I tell you what I was doing?" Asked the Wind Archer.

"Okay," replied Phil.

"Alright." Said the Wind Archer. "I was hunting at Leafre when I heard this huge commotion. I decided to check it out. I then saw all these weird looking monsters. Their level didn't look very high, but there sure were enough of them to make you wince. There were two main types that I saw: one kind looked like a person, but was gray, had this sort of antenna coming out of their head, and had these weird eyes that were really big. They also had this sort of uniform. Some had capes. They didn't have much of a face, though."

_Gray…_thought Phil.

"The second one resembled the octopi that you see at Kerning City. They were purple, but had these weird, transparent helmets or something of that sort. They also carried these weird pistols. I think they had three eyes."

_Purple…three eyes…_thought Phil.

"Does that remind you of anything?" Asked Empress Cygnus.

"Maybe."

"I also saw these three people, who were dressed differently from you. They seemed kinda weird, because the left you all of a sudden."

_Three people…_

"Well, maybe you would like to see the rest of Ereve," said Cygnus

"That sounds good." Replied Phil.

"I'll show you around," said the Wind Archer. "Perhaps you would like to see the Knights in training?"

Phil nodded, and they went over to the Ereve hunting grounds.

"Still can't remember your name, huh?" the Wind Archer asked a Phil who seemed to be in deep thought.

"Yeah," replied Phil. "By the way, what's your name?"

"I would rather…not have my name revealed, for now. There was this one time, at Henesys, where there was an attempted killing of some people by what was identified as a Black Magician's Subordinate, and I am the one who thwarted it. 'Reporters' identified me as the 'hero,' but I do not want to have much publicity, for now. It would be too much…"

The two were interrupted by a Noblesse who had just become a Wind Archer that ran past them and shouted to his friends "I'm going to fill up my quiver with arrows!"

"My name is Phil," Phil said out of the blue.

"Fill?" Asked the Wind Archer, puzzled.

"No, Phil, with a p-h." Phil said.

"So you have finally remembered your name."

Phil quickly reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue capsule.

"I've wanted to ask you what that was," said the Wind Archer, pointing at the capsule.

"You took out the contents in my pockets?" Phil asked, slightly shocked.

"No. Actually, the Empress did."

"What!"

"Well, we put them all back."

"What else did you people look at?"

The Wind Archer remained silent.

Phil sighed.

"Well, we wanted to identify who you were," said the Wind Archer at last.

"And you've done a really great job doing it," replied Phil with a slight hint of sarcasm.

"Well, the Empress and our tactician, Neinheart, did do a really good job hospitalizing you. And the Chief Knights, and even the other Knights in training, also lent a helping hand whenever they were needed."

"I guess I should be thankful, then."

-X-

"I'm getting bored," said Brent as he paced around the general area of the Omega Sector. "There's nothing to do."

"Oh? In what way?" asked Agent Marco.

Brent looked at him. "The Aliens are too weak. The monsters in Eos Tower are too weak. And I've already fought all the monsters in the Clock tower, upper and lower."

"Why not fight Papulatus?" Suggested Marco.

"Been there, done that," Said Brent. "With the other four."

"Then how about swimming a couple laps around the island of the Omega Sector?"

"With all this equipment?" Asked Brent.

"You're going to need it," replied Marco, lifting his hand. Brent sighed. "You could probably just jump into the water right now, you know. After all, the Agent Suit _is_ waterproof."

"Oh, alright. I just hope I don't drown," muttered Brent.

"Here," said Marco, handing Brent an Omega Sector Warp Capsule. "If you feel like you're going to drown, use this."

Brent hesitated for a moment, and then grabbed the capsule. He leapt into the water with a loud splash.

"Do you know how to dance ballet?" Agent Marco asked Evelyne and Celina, mostly to Evelyne.

"Why would I learn to dance ballet?" asked Evelyne.

"What's ballet got to do with all this?" Asked Celina.

"Well, ballet requires great dexterity, control, balance, and other things that would greatly enhance a Thief's abilities in fighting, stealth, movements, and the like."

"I've got to learn ballet?" whined Evelyne.

"Do you want to?"

-X-

Phil took out the Omega Sector Warp Capsule again and stared at it blankly.

"Can you remember what that is?" Asked the Wind Archer.

Phil shook his head. He then examined it from all sides, but still could not remember.

"Did I have anything else with me when you found me?" Phil suddenly asked.

"Yeah."

"Where is it?"

"It's inside this sort of safe," said the Wind Archer, who was already motioning for Phil to follow him. "You think it will help you remember who you are?"

"I think it should," replied Phil.

"Well, the biggest thing you had looked like a hi-tech Jackal, one weapon that the Gunslingers use," said the Wind Archer when they got there. "Here, let me get it…"

"Anything else?"

"There was this kind of pistol that shot Holy Arrows or something. Oh, and there's this sword with all these decorations on it."

"Let me see," Phil said.

"Hey Neinheart, can Phil have the stuff that I told you that he had with him when I found him?" asked the Wind Archer.

"Sure," replied Neinheart. "So you name is Phil, eh?" he asked as he straightened his monocle. He went and got the equipment, but returned with more than just two weapons.

He handed the sword, Laser Rifle and Laser Pistol to him, and also gave him the sunglasses, Receivers, gloves, and watch.

"You were also wearing these things," said Neinheart, referring to the watch, sunglasses, gloves, and Receivers. "These sunglasses seem to do a lot more than block sunlight, but we aren't sure what. These things with the antenna and microphone, we're not sure what it does exactly. And these gloves don't seem like any ordinary pair of gloves, either."

Phil put on the gloves. They felt so familiar, and fit like he had worn them for years. Maybe he did…

He looked at the Receivers and held them in his hands. He turned them around. A memory began to come back…he was in front of a huge building… but it was still vague; too vague to put finger on it.

He gave back the Receivers and took the pistol. He fired it at the ground as a beam of light shot out of it and burned a blade of grass.

"See," said the Wind Archer. "That thing shoots Holy Arrows."

"It's a laser," Phil said. He didn't why he had said that. He just knew, for some reason.

"A laser?" Asked the Wind Archer. He seemed confused.

"Give me the oversized weapon," Phil said. Neinheart handed it to him.

"Be careful," said Neinheart. "That thing seems pretty powerful. And dangerous."

Phil nodded. He then aimed upwards, at a forty-five degrees angle, and pressed a trigger a few times.

"That thing shoots Holy Arrows, too," said the Wind Archer.

"Those aren't Holy Arrows," said Phil.

"Then what are they?"

"Something a lot more powerful. And lethal."

"What if I'm a criminal," Phil suddenly said. "What if I'm, like, employed by and am a member of the Black Wing? I mean, I'm dressed completely in black. And the weapons I have seemed to be more powerful than ordinary ones."

"Do you feel like a criminal?" asked the Wind Archer.

"No, but…"

"I don't think the Black Wing would use light and Holy Arrows, or the so called 'lasers,'" the Wind Archer chuckled. "Besides, you don't look at all like a necromancer. And there didn't seem to be any necromancy at all when there were those alien monsters…"

"They're aliens," Phil quickly cut in. "I was fighting aliens. There were launching an invasion; they were attempting to kill the five priests of Leafre."

"So that's what was happening," muttered the Wind Archer. "Everything is starting to make a lot more sense." Then, on an impulse, the Wind Archer asked "What about the sword?"

"I don't remember fighting with it much," replied Phil.

"Oh, c'mon. If it's in your possession, you must have used at one time or another. Hey, I got an idea. Neinheart!"

"Yes?" He asked and came over.

"Can Phil here have a friendly duel with Mikhail? A competition might refresh his memory," he asked Neinheart.

"Sure, if Mikhail agrees. Mikhail!"

"Uhm, I don't think that would be a good idea…" said Phil, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Yes, Neinheart?" Mikhail asked as he hopped off the tree.

"Phil would like to have a friendly duel with you. It is possible that it might refresh his memory, like maybe by using a couple skills or tactics, could remind him of events or what not."

"Alright." Mikhail turned to Phil. "I'll go easy on you at first. Ready?"

"Uhm, okay," said Phil as he took the sword.

"On my mark," said Neinheart. "Three… Two… One…GO!"

Mikhail swung his sword, almost casually, at Phil. Phil blocked it with ease.

The two just stood there, in the position of the two blades touching, not knowing what to do.

"Your turn to attack," said Mikhail.

"Uhm, how?"

"Just use the best skill you know."

Phil racked his brain for whatever skill he knew. Anything that he could remember. Almost involuntary, he shouted "Intrepid Slash!"

Mikhail managed to block all three strikes, for he was prepared; however, it was a bit more than he had expected.

Finally, a full out "friendly duel" commenced.

"Combo Charge, Panic!" commanded Mikhail.

"Lightning Charge, Charged Blow!" Phil countered. Phil didn't know why he used those skills. There were almost unconscious acts.

The two swords slammed against each other, the attacks creating an explosion. As soon as the smoke dissipated, Mikhail commanded "Combo Charge, Coma!"

"Dark Impale!" Commanded Phil. For some reason, his sword was no longer a sword—it was a spear now. The two attacks canceled each other's out.

"What the—you know the skills of the other paths off the Warrior."

"I do?" asked Phil, just as surprised as Mikhail, and noticing that he was now holding a spear.

"Continue?" asked Mikhail.

"Uhm, sure," said Phil

The duel continued. "Soul Charge, Soul Driver!"

"Serenity!" Phil countered. A protective shield, similar to that of Divine Shield—but evidently much stronger—appeared around Phil, blocking all four strikes. Phil had no idea when he learned that skill—he knew that he knew it, but didn't know why.

_What kind of skill is Serenity?_ thought Mikhail.

With the Lightning Charge still intact and the sword pointed straight at Mikhail, Phil roared "Charged Blast!" A discharge of energy burst from Phil's weapon, and blew Mikhail away. Phil could barely believe the immensity of the attack. He suddenly felt very tired from using the skill. He looked over at Mikhail. Fortunately, he didn't seem to be very hurt.

Near the middle of the fight, the rest of the Chief Knights, who were still on the tree—even Eckhart, who usually didn't pay much attention to such things—had turned to look.

"Some 'friendly duel!" coughed Mikhail as Phil went over and helped him up. "Who am I fighting against, anyway?" he said, partly to Phil, partly to the Wind Archer, partly to Neinheart, and partly to himself.

"Wow," said the Wind Archer. "What you just did was…amazing."

"I'm surprised at myself, too." replied Phil weakly. _Who am I, anyway?_ Every attack, block, counterattack, that Phil did was actually instinctive; nothing was voluntary or thought through.

"Your weapon seemed to transform in the middle of the fight, and back again." said the Wind Archer. "Plus, you could use a Hero's, a Paladin's, and a Dark Knight's skills, too. And your sword, it seems, turned into a spear when you used Dark Impale. And I've never heard of Serenity or Charged Blast."

-X-

"I'm so ridiculously tired," Brent muttered when he got back from the laps, lying on his back, cold and wet. "I can't move another atomic mass unit."

"You just did," replied Marco.

"Huh?"

"By moving your lips," said Marco.

"Whatever," said Brent.

-X-

Phil looked at his watch and pressed some of the buttons. Some holograms appeared.

"Wow," said Neinheart. "I never imagined such a small watch could do so many things.

"I still can't remember everything," said Phil.

"I'm sure you will, in time."

"I don't know," said Phil. He tapped his feet together, and the cleats popped out.

"Huh?" said Phil, looking downwards. He tapped his feet together again, and the cleats retracted.

_Retractable cleats…_

"Does that mean anything to you?" asked Neinheart, who was just as surprised as Phil.

Phil remained staring down at the ground. Suddenly, everything seemed to come back to him at once.

_I'm an Agent…the Omega Sector…Agent Marco…the alien invasion at Leafre…Brent, Evelyne, and Celina…Robinson…_

Everything that had happened before flashed pass his eyes.

"I'm an Agent," Phil said.

"Huh?" Asked Empress Cygnus.

"Uh, forget what I just said," said Phil.

"But does that have anything to do with you?" Asked Cygnus.

"Uh…sort of."

He explained his current situation to Neinheart, Empress Cygnus, the Wind Archer, and the five Chief Knights while disclosing as little information as possible; he then took out another item, which they had also wondered about, and gave it to them.

"This is a pager," said Phil. "I was supposed to give it to someone else, but I will give it to you."

"Well, maybe you should give it to the other person," replied Cygnus.

Phil shook his head. "They already have what they need," He handed it to Empress Cygnus. "Anytime that you need me, call me with it—an alert will be sent to my watch."

"Why, thank you…I don't know what to say…" said Cygnus as she took the pager.

"We are very thankful…" said Neinheart.

"My thanks to you knows no bounds," replied Phil. "If it wasn't for you people, I may not even be standing right now." He then took out the small blue capsule.

"Have you figured out what that is?" asked the Wind Archer.

"Yes. It will take me back to my HQ. I have no doubts that the people there are worried sick about my disappearance. Farewell." He pushed the button, and he disappeared in a flash.

-X-

"This feels dumb," muttered Evelyne as she began standing on her tippy-toes and leapt from place to place.

"But don't Thieves need this kind of dexterity and nimbleness?" asked Agent Marco.

"Yeah, but not this way…"said Evelyne. She suddenly stopped. "I'm getting tired," whined Evelyne. "Probably more tired than Brent over there," she said, pointing at him.

Just then, the impossible happened: Phil walked into the Omega Sector, alive and real.

"OH MY GOD!" screamed Evelyne. She suddenly stopped everything she was currently doing and Flash Jumped to him.

Brent, also shocked, immediately got up and ran towards Phil.

"So much for not being able to move another atomic mass unit," muttered Agent Marco.

"Well, I had my doubts," Celina said to Marco.

"Sure…" said Marco barely glancing at her.

"You're alive, Philly!" squealed Evelyne, hugging Phil so hard that he was sure he was going to cramps that would last at least a year.

"Yeah, I'm…alive…" Phil managed to stutter. "And can…you please…stop calling…me…Philly?"

"Okay, Philly," she said, embracing him even harder. Finally, she let go. Phil sighed, partly relieved, and partly for his own thoughts. He supposed he could get used to the nickname "Philly," as long as nobody else called him that.

"Hey, buddy," said Brent, who shook hands with him and gave each other a bear hug, and patted each other on the back. "Looks like you didn't die after all."

"Did you think that I really did die?" Asked Phil, grinning.

Phil walked over to Agent Marco. "Did you get the Omega Sector Secret Documents back?" he asked.

"Yup," replied Marco. He produced three sophisticated looking documents, seemingly out of thin air.

-X-

"So, where did you put the Omega Sector Secret Documents that the so called 'gullible Human' stole for and gave to you?" A Chief Gray asked Alien Gray.

"I put it here, in this impregnable safe," replied the satisfied Alien Gray. "I call it impregnable, because no Human could possibly break it—nope, not even in a million years."

"Show me," said the Chief Gray.

"Follow me," replied Alien Gray. They went over to the so called safe. After going through some process of opening it, he opened it, back to the safe, waiting for praise from the Chief Gray.

"There's nothing in there!" roared the Chief Gray.

Alien Gray spun around and put a hand inside, then his entire head into it, searching the safe, every nook and cranny. There really wasn't anything inside, though Alien Gray could barely believe it.

-X-

"The safe was actually a lot easier to open than I thought," said Agent Marco. "There wasn't as much security as predicted, either."

"I guess it was a really good time to pick, when so many of them were away at another location a couple miles away," replied Phil.

Steven and Josh came over. "So you're the 'so-called' Phil," said Steven shaking hands with him.

"Nice to meet you," said Josh, who also shook hands with Phil.

"Nice to meet you, too," said Phil.

Phil looked around, and saw that all five—the three he new and the two newcomers—all wore uniforms like himself.

"So," said Phil. "What has Marco been teaching you these days?"

"Ballet," said Evelyne, in a slightly whining tone.

"Ballet?" Asked Phil. He looked at Marco.

"Well, she's a Rogue, and Rogue's need stealth, dexterity, swiftness, and gracefulness."

"Why do I have to be graceful?" Evelyne asked.

"You never taught me ballet," said Phil to Marco.

"Then why do I have to learn it if he never had to learn it?" pouted Evelyne.

"Because you're not him," replied Marco in an exact tone.

Evelyne crossed her arms. "Why do I have to do all this hard work?" she asked.

"I believe that Phil has done a lot more work than you," replied Marco. Evelyne frowned.

"The path to become an Agent is not an easy one. Phil knows a lot about it already," said Marco, turning to Phil. "Would you care to tell it to them?" Brent, Celina, Josh, and Steven had also come over and were surrounding Phil.

"Uh, maybe not right now. There are a few things that I still need to get cleared up. Actually, I'm not too sure about how I learned all my skills; I may not be able to tell much replied. I've lost a lot of my memory, it seems," replied Phil.

Marco nodded. "Very well. I guess we all need a rest from all this."

* * *

><p><em>I will get my revenge,<em> thought Alien Gray.


	4. Revenge of the Gray Guys

Disclaimer: I do not own Maplestory

Ch. 4: Revenge of the Gray Guys

In the following days, Phil slowly but surely regained his memory. It would often have the process of Agent Marco or someone else starting a sentence about an event or situation, and Phil would finish the sentence. Of course, this was only the superficial part of the situation; there were careful details that Phil eventually remembered, but Phil would recover everything in the very near and foreseeable future.

Phil would often spend his spare time balancing chemical equations, drawing Lewis Structures, and calculating the mass percent, molarity, molality, and normality of solutions.

Incidentally, Phil regained almost all of his memory on the day when the rest of the cadre completed their own training (or almost all of it), which included everything that Phil himself had done. (Un)fortunately, they also learned the skills of Cygnus Knights after that.

"_Hey. Kyrin sent these books to us," said Dr. Kim._

"_They're…Cygnus Knights skill books. Where did they come from?" asked Brent. Everyone turned to look at Phil, as he was the only one who had ever been in Ereve._

"_Don't look at me," said Phil, lifting both hands up. "I didn't ask for any skill books."_

"_Kyrin said that a Wind Archer dropped them off. He didn't give his name."_

_Nobody spoke for several seconds._

"_Anyway," said Dr. Kim, breaking the silence. "I feel that you should take a look at these skills. They might help you in the long run."_

"_What!" cried Evelyne. "After all of this hard work and training! I'm so freakin' tired I could sleep for a year! Why do I have to learn more?"_

"_I'm pretty sure you know most of the skills already," replied Agent Marco. "Just learn the ones that are new to you."_

"_Plus," added Phil. "Remember that I have to learn _all _of them. That is, I have to look at every single book. You, and the others, only have to look at one."_

-X-

"Pistol-ready position," commanded Agent Marco. Brent, Celina, Evelyne, Josh, Steven, and, Phil, held the laser pistols at approximately 45-degrees upward. On this day, they were practicing their pistol marksmanship. Josh loved it. Celina hated it. The rest were "okay" with it.

The Agents automatically shifted to "standing position without support," as they extended the pistol and held it with hands, their feet a slight distance apart, and the wrist and elbow of the pistol locked and pointed toward the imaginary "target."

After that, they switched to the kneeling position, then the crouching position without any commands from Marco. They simultaneously dropped to the prone position, lying flat on the ground. Then they got up.

Agent Marco barked a new string of commands at them, which they executed immediatly.

"Traversing to the left; traversing to the right; traversing to the front; traversing over the left shoulder; traversing to the right rear; traversing to the left, kneeling; traversing to the front, kneeling; traversing to the right new side, kneeling!"

All of them stopped in unison.

* * *

><p>The rest of their training included survival in the worst conditions, region-specific combat, unarmed offense and defense, and "field-expedient" weapons, such as using three-foot sticks.<p>

-X-

"Heads. Your turn."

Phil and Brent were inside the common room and were flipping coins to pass the time. They had no cards to play with, and just messing around with the mesos they had. The others were outside showing off to each other and practicing their skills.

"Alright," said Brent. "I choose tails." He flipped the coin, and it landed on tails.

"Ha! I'm gonna win."

"I feel kind of uncomfortable, Brent."

"Of course you do. That's because you're about to lose."

"Not. Not that. It's about the Aliens. Something doesn't feel right. They looks as if they've grown… smarter."

"And what's your point? How much smarter could they have gotten? Definitely not smarter than us. Besides; we'll still wipe them all out sooner or later."

"I feel it…but I can't describe it."

"Well, let's finish the game first."

Suddenly, Evelyne, who was also inside, caught movement out the corner of her eye. It was a Mateon moving freely around the Omega Sector, and it seemed that no one had noticed it. She grabbed the meso as it was in mid-flip and threw it out the open window, shouting "Meso Explosion!"

"Hey!" shouted Brent. "What did you do that for? I was about to win!"

Brent's question was quickly answered as the meso hit the Mateon dead center with an explosion, and it died with a loud squeal.

"Hmmm…how did that Mateon manage to get in?" asked Evelyne.

"Hey, I see how it got in," said Brent. "The laser wall is down."

A few seconds passed until that stared at each other and shouted in unison "The laser wall is down?"

They quickly rushed out the building. Obviously, the others had noticed too, and were pulling out their weapons. The alarm sounded soon after, but lasting only for a few seconds before it died down. Then it turned on again, and quickly turned off. All the lights were flashing intermittently, and the alarm gave a weird whining sound. Soldiers were running all over the place in confusion.

Inside the Command Center, everything that was a computer or connected to the computers began malfunctioning. Dr. Kim looked around. "A virus," he muttered. "The Aliens must have done it."

Several Mateons had entered the general area of the Omega Sector, and a few Plateons had also followed in. However, they were no match to the trained soldiers, as the Aliens were rapidly gunned down with their automatics. However, the greater threat was still to come. They would need to be stopped before getting to close.

The six Agents rushed out, wearing most of their equipment, past where the laser wall was supposed to be, firing their weapons at the Aliens the entire time, with Marco staying behind, "In case if any Aliens were to slip through." And boy, he could not have been more right. Off-Limits was swarming with Aliens that weren't usually there, including some Barnard Grays, some Mechateons and Plateons, and even a few Zeta Grays.

They quickly cleared out Off-Limits, as the purple octopi Aliens were quickly decimated. The Aliens which were "smarter" turned and ran. The Agents gave chase. Phil, Brent, and Celina went towards Kulan Field after the Grays, and Steven, Josh, and Evelyne went after the purple octopi in Boswell Field.

A few of them slipped through, but were quickly killed by the senior Agent.

During the next eight hours, Dr. Kim and Professor Porter were at the computers and servers to eliminate the virus. The Agents helped too, which allowed them to complete the job in that time.

"Well, the virus has been completely cleared and all the computers and servers are back up running. That was sure one hell of a job, though," said Dr. Kim when the task was over.

-X-

"Why do I have to learn ballet?" whined Evelyne.

"You want to know why you have to learn ballet?" Asked Marco. "Here, let me show you. Let's go out to Off-Limits."

When they got there, he motioned to stand at a specific spot, which, unbeknownst to Evelyne, was the center of the area.

"You have been practicing your 'spinning,' correct?"

"Uh, yeah. So what?"

"I want you to spin as fast as you can and, at the same time, throw your shurikens. I don't care how you throw them, or in what direction, or your accuracy. Just throw them as fast as you can, while spinning."

Evelyne nodded, and did as Marco commanded. Marco leapt onto a higher platform as Evelyne began her "spinning."

Stars began flying every which way, hitting every Mateon in the place. By the time the Mateons realized what was happening, it had already been too late.

The result was horrific. Virtually the entire Off-Limits was cleared of Aliens. When she stopped "spinning," all the Aliens in site were dead Aliens. Wide eyed, she was lost for words.

Marco hopped down from his spot and landed next to her.

"You see? Everything we teach has a purpose, even if the purpose is not clear at first. You may not understand, but in due time, you will."

She looked at him. "Then why don't tell me, us, about it? When you begin to teach us?"

"Because you will learn it better that way." he replied. "You won't be thinking about the results while the duration you are training; also, when you finally see the results, they will have optimal effects, like this time."

The two headed back to the Omega Sector.

-X-

It came in the middle of the night.

The deafening klaxon blared through compound, and, like the previous time, a weird whining noise followed. Everyone realized that the laser wall was once again down. However, the confusion was not in what was happening; instead, it was in how. How could the same thing be happening so soon again, with so many workings just been done? (They later found out that the virus was a "smart" virus; during the scanning and removal process, the most crucial parts of it had hidden away and not been detected. After the "job" was done, it came back out and went to wrecking the system.)

Everyone got their equipment and into attack position much faster than before, though they could all hear Dr. Kim and Professor Porter shouting things like "How can this be happening again?" and "What the hell?"

It was difficult for the soldiers to see, due to the poor lighting, and many of them were firing blindly at the Aliens. The six Agents, with their night-vision sunglasses, could get a semi-clear view of the area, and their equipment also helped illuminate the place.

There somehow seemed to be more aliens than the last time, though it didn't seem probable.

"What in the world is happening?" screamed Brent as he shot down several Plateons with his Laser Rifle.

"Don't shout so loud!" was the reply from Celina, who was several yards away, casting her own spells and blowing apart dozens of the purple aliens. "We're on receivers, remember?"

"Just attack!" Phil said through the receivers over the roar of the explosions. He whipped around and sliced apart a number of Mechateons with his Crescent Moon. Switching weapons to his Laser Rifle, he commanded "Rapid Blast!" and mowed down a mob of Aliens that consisted of both species.

A series of star-field attacks from Chief Grays in retaliation knocked him backwards. Quickly recovering, he fired several rockets at the old Grays and they were no more.

"We need a better plan," said Phil,

"Use the most powerful skills you have on three," said Agent Marco as he finished with his most recent problems with the Aliens. "One…Two…Three!"

There was a deafening scream of "CHAOS STORM!" from Josh a moment later, as hundreds golden arrows flew out of nowhere and slammed into the Aliens, and in effect thinning out their troops. This was followed by a cry of "Combo Destruction!" from Brent, as the 20 combo orbs, which he was able to charge from Combo Mastery, that circled him created a colossal explosion and killed every Gray and Octopi around him.

"Iron Curtain!" Cried Evelyne as thousands of shurikens, similar in affect to Arrow Rain, rained down upon the Aliens.

"Apocalypse!" Commanded Celina. Holy blasts of energy, a blinding light that penetrated the Curtain, unmistakably stronger than Genesis, as it, quite literally, turned night into day, struck down even more monsters, though it couldn't be seen exactly how.

"Thunder Sphere!" An orb of electrified power came from Steven shortly after. It sailed through the field, electrocuting and short-circuiting the machines and killed numerous Grays.

"NOVA BOMB!" Agent Marco and Phil commanded in unison. The blinding detonation destroyed the last of the Aliens.

Everyone stopped, panting hard from the fighting, as the activity died down and everything became more tranquil.

Suddenly and unexpectedly, a missile came flying out Kulan Field and exploded head on with Agent Marco. There was no time to prepare for it. He was sent flying backwards all the way back to the Omega Sector.

Everybody rushed back to the Omega Sector to Marco. By this time, all the systems had recovered and turned back on. Agent Marco was lying on his and had blood all over him. The faint lighting gave him an eerie glow.

"That missile… had my name on it…" sputtered Agent Marco. He coughed out some blood.

"No…don't…" Began Phil.

Marco managed a sad smile. "I'm… an old man…too old for … my line… of work."

Phil knelt down next to him. "I have…taught you…everything…I know." Continued Marco. "Pro—promise … me… that you will…continue…the legacy…of…the Agents."

A single tear ran down Phil's right cheek. "I promise."

The single tear was followed by countless others, diluting the blood, in his wish to have just one more moment with the man as the only father he ever knew.

Evelyne knelt down beside him. "We'll all be missing him," she said in a soft voice.

-X-

_Several days later…_

Everybody was at the lab, and Dr. Kim recapped on all the rest of the gadgets, as well as introduced new ones. For example, he showed that the watch could not only tell world time, but had a GPS, diamond buzz saw, a small laser beam, radar, altimeter, barometer, thermometer, compass, was able to send out distress signals, and several more functions.

Their shoes/boots, Dr. Kim said, had retractable cleats.

"No rocket shoes?" Said Steven in dismay.

"Nope. Not yet. Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't think there will ever be any, since all of the previous prototypes carried barely enough fuel to even get you off the ground."

Steven frowned.

"However," Dr. Kim added. "We _are_ working on a new type of jet-pack."

"You do that, Doc." Said Steven, his hopes obviously raised

"Do you have your Astral Blade with you?" Dr. Kim asked Phil.

"Uh, yeah," said Phil, and took it out.

"I'm not sure if Agent Marco ever told you this, but the Astral Blade, along with the other forms, will adapt and change to the situation, time period, etc."

"What does that mean?" asked Phil, puzzled.

"In time, you will learn," was the reply.

"That's what they alway's say," muttered Phil.

"Oh, and by the way, take this. Professor Foxwit recommended this for you." Dr. Kim took out a blue cape. "This is called a Sirius Cloak."

"What does it do?"

"Well, it says that it enhances the wearer's speed, strength and movement in battle. So I guess it's like a Icarus cape with with couple strength enhancements."

Phil took it and looked it over, but didn't put it on. It seemed that looks was where it all ended.

"One last thing," said Dr. Kim. "This is a Swiss Army Knife."

"Okay…" Phil said slowly.

"Hey. Don't look down at it just because it's small. It has several functions that could save your life. It fact, it did for me. It saved me from Crimson Balrogs on a ship to Orbis once."

"Well, when I was young, these Crimson Balrogs invaded a ship I was on and grabbed me."

"What happened?" asked Celina. The others wondered how such puny blades would be any effect against a massive beast like a Balrog.

"Well, I happened to have one of the blades out, and it fell out of my belt. Those dumb beasts saw it, and let me go, diving after the shiny thing. I was close enough to the ship and managed to climb back on unharmed. I never saw them again."

"The Balrogs or the knife?"

"Neither."

The six of them exchanged looks, not quite able to believe Dr. Kim's story. But, hey, it _could_ help them in the future, and each took one "Swiss Army Knife." It wasn't big, and didn't take up much space, anyway.

"There have been quite a few modifications made on the Knives that you have," said Dr. Kim as everyone was about to turn and leave. "Would you like to hear about them?"

Everyone turned back toward him and nodded simultaneously.

"Very well." Kim picked up a spare one on the desk.

"Along with the regular saw, blades, tools, and the like, there are several useful functions onto it. One thing here is a tranquilizer dart." Dr. Kim flipped the "launcher" out from the body of the Knife.

"It has a shock absorber in this 'launcher,' which is pressurized. A swivel mechanism on the dart allows the dart's tail-fin assembly to store flat and open in the first moments of flight. It has an effective range of 120 feet. The dart uses a similar mechanism to the rockets fired from the Laser Rifles, the ramjet, for maximum in flight. The dart is tipped with a rapid-action knockout chemical, which causes unconsciousness in a matter of seconds. This unconsciousness can last up to an average of one hour, though has no serious side effects, which can be good or bad."

"Over here," continued Kim, as he pushed the "launcher" back into the body and brought out another function, "Are the lights, white and infrared, which will aid in vision."

"Finally, it has a small drill on this side. However small it may be, it is still exceptionally powerful. It can create a gap large enough for you to shoot a laser, arrow or knife through, though most of your lasers will probably be powerful enough to pierce walls."

"And if that isn't enough, right next to the drill is a vacuum. Although they can be used independently, they can also be used together. You know how there can be tell-tale dust when you drill holes? Well, the vacuum will take care of that for you."

"And I have a surprise for all of you," said Dr. Kim, motioning for the Agents to follow him.

"Where are you taking us?" asked Steven as all six got up simultaneously.

"You are getting your mounts," Dr. Kim replied.

"Mounts?" asked Josh, slightly confused.

"Of course. Everyone needs mounts."

"So what animal are we getting?" asked Brent. "Adventurers get hogs, Cygnus Knights get ostriches, and Aran had a wolf."

"It is much better than any of those."

They went into this sort of garage in the Omega Sector Silo. There, Dr. Kim picked up six cylinders that were 15" long. He tossed one to each.

"This is a mount?" Evelyne asked skeptically. They were actually quite heavy for their size.

"I'll show you," offered Dr. Kim. Evelyne handed her cylinder to Dr. Kim, who removed the lid and pull out…something. Dr. Kim hit something and it quickly unfolded to take the shape of…a motorcycle. It looked very sophisticated, too.

Everyone else started removing the lids of their 15" cylinders and pulled out the thing that was inside, and the "thing" also quickly unfolded to become a motorcycle by the same command.

"This motorcycle," said Dr. Kim, who was using Evelyne's as an example, "has several functions. All of you have just seen one that is very important—it can fold up and be put into a 15-inch cylinder. Other than the basic speedometers and what not, there are also several other features and uses, which I will explain right now."

"The tires are made of polyurethane elastomer structure. What this means is that it has a 'honeycomb' of pressurized cells; it cannot be punctured or lose pressure. They are so small that if one or more break, it has little to no effect on the performance of the bike or tires. These tires absorb shock and resist weathering more effectively than standard rubber tires."

"It has a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) sprayer, which is one of the most slippery substances known to man, often used to coat not-stick cooking pans. It is basically oil slick. It should be able to stop whoever is behind you from pursuing you. It is pressurized so that when it is activated, the oil will spray out of the nozzle. It is pointed at an angle which will have minimal affect to the rider."

"Next, it has a Rapid-Scan Radar that scans the area hundreds of times per second, along with a Long Range and Ultra Wideband (UWB) Radar. All of this collects the information around you, whether when you are moving or not."

"There's also a Center of Gravity Balancer, which allows the rider to ride on the bike at ridiculously wide angles."

"The wheels have anti-riot spikes. These should keep some monsters off of you."

"The standard headlight conceals a magnesium flare headlight, which reaches 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit in less than 1 second, which creates a light of blinding intensity. An infrared headlight that is also concealed, which aids in night vision."

"The front also has a machine gun and rocket launcher. However, that is not the only place where rockets can be fired. There are four exhausts in the back; two of those exhausts can fire rockets. These rockets are almost the same as the rockets you have for firing from your Laser Rifle, though they may be slightly larger and pack more of a punch."

"It has an on-board computer, which can calculate and monitor everything in all kinds of weather and environment—snow, wind, fog, rain; and countless other devices. This also translates to auto-pilot. And what looks like a reinforced/ bullet proof glass is actually a heads-up display; of course, it is also protected."

"There are units around the motorcycle that can generate a force field around you, though that won't last very long. These same units use a GPS system to blend into your surroundings, basically camouflage, being able to conceal you."

"There are these things called 'sonic screamers.' As you can probably guess from their name, they produce these high frequency sound waves that will send monsters and people's senses haywire."

"There are also these 'stealth units' which allow for near silent movement, depending on the speed. Of course, they won't work well at the higher speeds."

"Remember the oil slick? Well, if that itself won't work, here's something else: it can also spray smokescreen. The motorcycle carries a pump; however, the tires never need to be pumped, because the tires are flat-free. The pump is where the smokescreen is sprayed from. The smoke is dense and nontoxic; the smoke is created by heating a mixture of distilled water and propylene glycol and forces it into the air under pressure."

"The front is reinforced to allow for smashing through anything. Or, as I might add, anyone."

"And finally, as a last resort, it has an ejector seat for the direst emergencies. Under the seat is a cylinder of carbon dioxide pressurized at around 200 psi. The seat post rests on a piston connected to a pressure regulator at the top of the gas, and a clamp holds everything in place, preventing the cylinder from firing. They are almost always built into the motorcycle, but I don't think that it has ever been used by anyone. I doubt any of you will have to use it. But it is there, just in case."

Dr. Kim pushed something on the motorcycle and it folded back up. He returned it to the 15" cylinder and handed it back to Evelyne.

Evelyne stared at the cylinder. She was completely baffled by all the functions abilities of the motorcycle. She looked at the others. They too were perplexed by all of this.

"Uhm, what is the maximum speed?"

"The maximum speed is 2.5 Mach," replied Dr. Kim, as if it was completely normal. "However, few have used that top speed. It can go from zero to 70 miles per hour in three seconds."

-X-

"So," said Dr. Kim after they got out into the open area. "This is everything that Agent Marco has prepared for you, everything that an Agent has to help complete their job."

Phil nodded. "And continue the legacy of the Agents."

They would go on missions, saving those in need without leaving any evidence.

Perhaps a few dramatic battles would go with them.

The rest of the time, they would kick back, relax, and talk about the "good old days."

They had no idea how wrong they were.

* * *

><p>Author's Note: This chapter may seem kind of rushed; my time for writing has been drastically reduced because of loads of homework, physical therapy, tests that I need to make up, and being in this contest that I had not realized that WAS a contest at first (it was competition involving several of the schools in my area. Lol)<p>

By the way, because the "arrows" don't work (if you know what I'm talking about; they're used for html format/ encoding; they look like sideways "v's") the brackets, { } will be used to signify speech through receivers/ radio.


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